@ MusicAsAWeapon - This is only the 2nd year that ImagiCon is being
held. As with most new ventures, many lose money for years before they
get enough support from the community and name recognition to have a
steady and growing following. I spoke to ImagiCon organizers of the Con
last year and their main goal was to have a good, solid Con that didn't
have any major hick-ups, so that they could return this year with
bigger names and an even more solid foundation, which is what they seem
to be doing.

And as far as getting Billingsley and Friedericy as a "package
deal," this happens very often in hosting events like this. When an
event has a budget to work with, what is the harm when they can get a
better deal on signing known names, so that they can put their
resources and money towards other parts of the event? Sounds like good
thinking on my end.

Going out and getting sponsors to help pay for celebrities....sounds
like a great plan for an event that is still young and wants to do
their best to not immediately go in the hole and then just be a
"memory" as so many other Birmingham events have done.

True....ImagiCon will be 1/10th the size of Atlanta's Dragon*Con -
but that Con has been around for many years and is a well-oiled machine
at this point. If ImagiCon survives the test of time, no one knows, but
trying to get a higher number of celebrities for an event like this,
while also using sponsors resources sounds right on par. --- Posted by Random_Bham_Dude

@Random_Bham_Dude : I've been attending conventions for years. I
love going to them, and I have seen the best and worst of a lot of them
from TX to GA and that includes conventions here in AL. In my travels
to conventions here in AL, I'll admit, I have not been to all of them,
But when attending ImagiCon, I feel like they are trying to hard. Last
year was very programming heavy, and this year the celebrities are not
anything special, as I've seen them at rival conventions. I personally
feel that if you want to stand out, you should do something different.
Imagicon is not doing anything special to stand out as best I can tell.

Yes, They have a new venue this year, But isn't this just the second
year for them? That's 2 venues in 2 years! And the space between their
"host" hotels and the venue is ridiculous! I'm not walking from my
hotel to the venue, and I'm not all that crazy about coming in from out
of town to try to figure out Birmingham's one way streets and find my
way back and forth.

I heard a rumor awhile back that ImagiCon also took the venue this
year because they had no money to rent one, and McWayne was just
willing to host them for a percentage of the ticket sales.

If they keep going at the rate I feel they are going now, I'm
predicting that they will have to fade into oblivion within the next
few years. I just don't see the staying power with the things I'm
seeing and hearing about them.

Then again, If they prove me wrong, I'm willing to admit I was wrong
when that time comes. I hope they work out what they can, and live on,
But just right now, I'm not feeling it.---
Posted by MusicAsAWeapon

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